Good morning. We, too, are at 52-week lows. Happy Friday y'all. —Neal Freyman, Max Knoblauch, Matty Merritt | | | |  | Nasdaq | 13,716.72 | | | | | S&P | 4,380.26 | | | | | Dow | 34,312.03 | | | | | 10-Year | 1.961% | | | | | Bitcoin | $40,627.62 | | | | | Meta | $207.71 | | | | *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 8:00pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean. | - Markets: The Ukraine crisis has emerged as the primary force moving markets, so as the threat of war increased yesterday, stocks got clobbered and Treasury yields fell as investors ducked for cover in safer assets. After another grisly day, Meta has dropped out of the top 10 companies by market cap, having lost more than $500 billion in value since a September peak.
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Innovation in electric and autonomous vehicles is racing ahead. Check out investing ideas to help tap into these trends using ETFs at iShares.com. | | Photo Illustration: Dianna "Mick" McDougall; Sources: Win McNamee, Apic, and Nenov via Getty Images Business moguls typically try to place nice with the government to earn better treatment for their companies. Not Elon Musk, who's only ratcheted up his barrage on US authorities. The latest: Tesla yesterday accused the SEC, Wall Street's top cop, of harassing Musk in order to "chill" his right to free speech. The complaint stems from a 2018 settlement over Musk's tweet that he had the "funding secured" to take Tesla private. - The SEC alleged that Musk broke securities law with that statement, because he wasn't telling the truth.
- The two sides reached an agreement that resulted in $40 million in fines, Musk having to leave his chairman position for three years, and a requirement that certain Musk tweets and other public statements get clearance from lawyers.
In the years since, Musk and the SEC have escalated their beef, with the SEC telling Tesla that some of Musk's tweets violated the agreement, and Musk flinging back schoolyard insults. But now it's reached a fever pitch Let's go back to the letter Tesla sent to the SEC yesterday. "Worst of all," it reads, "the SEC seems to be targeting Mr. Musk and Tesla for unrelenting investigation largely because Mr. Musk remains an outspoken critic of the government." It's certainly true that Musk has ridiculed his own government to an extent we haven't seen from a big-name CEO…maybe ever? A few examples: - Musk has mocked President Biden for failing to mention his company when touting electric vehicle development in the US.
- And he blamed a recent recall of 500,000+ vehicles with a feature that plays fart noises on the "fun police"—aka the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The beef doesn't stop at the US border. Musk has been a frequent critic of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and yesterday he posted a meme that compared Trudeau to Hitler (which he later deleted). Musk's critics say these comments are not only juvenile and offensive, but also hypocritical, given the billions in government subsidies his companies have received. Looking ahead…authorities don't seem to be deterred by the occasional mean tweet. Safety regulators opened an investigation into Teslas that reportedly brake unexpectedly when using the company's Autopilot system. It's the third federal safety probe of Tesla in six months.—NF | | Anatolii Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images  US officials ramp up the warnings over Ukraine. President Biden said he expects Russia to launch an invasion into Ukraine within days, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken explained how the Russians may go about it: first, by creating a pretext for war such as a fabricated terrorist attack. Then the Russian government would "theatrically convene" emergency meetings and begin a bombing campaign and cyberattacks, followed by a ground invasion.
 California gets SMARTER. That's the state's acronym for a new plan that will allow Californians to return to a more normal life even as Covid sticks around. The plan involves stockpiling tests, ventilators, and masks that can be deployed quickly for future surges, as well as using wastewater surveillance to get out ahead of those outbreaks.
 Remember getting a discount on a new car? Those days are dead and gone according to AutoNation, the largest auto dealership chain in the US. Its CEO said that the industry is moving toward a new normal where inventories are kept lean so that margins can be kept fatty. Wild stat: Half of all new cars from major brands arriving at lots in the next 90 days have already been sold.
| | Adult Swim/Warner Bros. Redwood Materials, a startup founded by former Tesla CTO and co-founder JB Straubel, is going full elementary school student council and launching a recycling program. But instead of incentivizing participation with a pizza party, Redwood is partnering with Ford and Volvo in an attempt to create a "closed-loop" supply chain for EV battery materials. How it will work: Dealers and dismantlers in California can ask Redwood to pick up lithium-ion and nickel metal hydride batteries from EVs that have been turned out to pasture. And Redwood, Volvo, and Ford will shoulder the costs of transportation. - Last year, Ford invested $50 million into Redwood to kickstart this kind of program.
The problem they're trying to solve: California has seen an alarming rise in fires caused by batteries at recycling facilities. But organizing safe battery recycling, especially for a rapidly growing EV market, is more complicated than a Christmas with divorced parents. Redwood claims it can not only take care of battery waste safely, but also recover 95% of the materials.—MM | | | First of all, you look great. Butt here's the thing: You got it, so flaunt it. Why ruin the view with a bulky bi-fold when you can compliment that derriere with a wallet from The Ridge? The Ridge's slim wallets are designed with minimalist style—in finishes such as classic black, forged ember, or 18K gold—and maximum durability. With thousands of five-star reviews, a classic look, and RFID-blocking technology, these wallets are a no-brainer for your booty (and your money). The Ridge has stylish, functional wallets, tools, and gear for every tushy on the move. Use code WALLETS10 to get 10% off your purchase today. | | Cheriss May/NurPhoto via Getty Images Former First Lady Melania Trump's foray into NFTs has a spicy update: The wallet that created her much-discussed "Head of State Collection, 2022" NFT ultimately funded the account that purchased it for $170,000. In January, Melania Trump announced the auction of her NFT collection, which centered on a wide-brimmed hat she wore while meeting French President Emmanuel Macron. Due to the nature of public blockchains, the transactions made to purchase it are viewable. Investigations by Vice and Bloomberg found that the address that created Trump's NFT funded a second address, which itself funded a third address that placed the winning bid on the items. Some believe the ordeal may be an example of wash trading—a process by which a trader simultaneously buys and sells an asset, artificially inflating its price. Illegal in the US since 1936, wash traders in the unregulated NFT market made about $8.9 million in profit in 2021. Trump's office told Vice that the transaction was "facilitated on behalf of a third-party buyer," but did not elaborate on who won the auction or why the address of the NFT creator provided the funds to the auction winner. Meanwhile, Trump soldiers on, launching another 10,000 NFT collection yesterday for $50 a piece.—MK | | Fayez Nureldine/AFP via Getty Images Stat: When a rail company in Saudi Arabia announced it was looking for 30 women to drive its bullet trains, it received 28,000 applications, highlighting the extraordinary interest in jobs among a segment of the population that has traditionally been sidelined from the kingdom's labor force. While female participation in the Saudi workforce has nearly doubled in the last five years due to relaxed restrictions, women still need a male relative's approval for standard activities like opening a bank account or getting married. Quote: "We're at more risk now than we've been in a generation that this could get out of control." An anxious St. Louis Fed President James Bullard pushed the central bank to act more aggressively to combat inflation during a talk at Columbia University. He re-upped his call for the Fed to hike interest rates by a full percentage point by July 1. Read: (Almost) everything you've ever wanted to know about flour. (Eater) | | The feeling of getting a 5/5 on the Brew's Weekly News Quiz has been compared to grabbing a slice of pizza without ripping any of the cheese off the piece next to it. It's that satisfying. Ace the quiz. | | - Joe Rogan's deal to bring his podcast exclusively to Spotify is actually worth at least $200 million, according to the NYT. The previously quoted figure was around $100 million.
- Kamila Valieva, the Russian figure skater at the center of a doping controversy, finished fourth in the women's individual competition. Her fellow Russian, Anna Shcherbakova, won the gold.
- Condé Nast turned a profit for the first time in years, according to the WSJ.
- Snapchat users will be able to change their usernames later this month, so you can finally say goodbye to the embarrassing one you thought was funny when you were 16.
| | A sock for all seasons. Knees and shoulders are tucked away 'til spring, but let those ankles out to play! These sock-drawer staples from Bombas are designed for maximum comfort and come in colors that'll brighten any winter's day. Stock up on ankle socks and save.* Ouch—right in the funny bone: That's how it'll feel for investors who miss out on Monogram, because the last chance to invest is *today*, 2/18/22. Monogram's cutting-edge ortho solution has already raised nearly $19M from over 11,000 shareholders this round. Invest here.* Light Friday fare: There's more to these sculptures than initially meets the eye. Plus, Indiana Jones like you've never seen it before. The Black history you've never heard about: The Brew's Sigin Ojulu is on a mission to become the sixth Black person mentioned in American history for achieving something prominent. Watch her journey here. Good follow: For daily wisdom, there's no better account than Frog and Toad Bot. *This is sponsored advertising content | | | Name a country of six or more letters. Swap out two of the letters to name a resident of another country's capital. | | Pakistan → Parisian (H/t NPR for the puzzle) | | | Written by Neal Freyman, Max Knoblauch, and Matty Merritt Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here. WANT MORE BREW? Industry news, with a sense of humor → - Emerging Tech Brew: AI, crypto, space, autonomous vehicles, and more
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